Just a few days ago, I read a piece on sound quality by Nick Southall in which he cited Flaming Lips albums as examples of dire sound quality due to the extreme loudness and dynamic range compression.
And a look at their albums analysed on the Dynamic Range Database shows some releases languishing with DR4 and DR5 average. Only a couple of early albums on CD from the late 1980s get up around DR12, and even their currently available lossless downloads are down at DR4-DR7, with one EP scraping the depths at DR3.
Yet, Wayne Coyne seemingly appreciates the high quality in which his music is presented by Qobuz.
That puzzles me. As far as I knew, this band has no track record in championing high quality music delivery. With his dense mixes and big sound, Coyne is known for his sonic experimentation, pushing the limits of the stereo soundscape, but that doesn’t equate with sound quality, although apparently the album American Head is highly rated for stereo effects (but scores a dismal DR4!). What miracle is being or is to be performed on the Flaming Lips back catalogue by Qobuz to create listenable recordings from Coyne’s band? Have they sourced and remastered original high quality recordings?
Qobuz promote their sound quality, as the service delivers streaming and purchasing in both Hi-Fi and Hi-Res formats. Hi-Fi quality is standard CD quality with a bit rate up to 1,411kbps and a sample rate of 44.1Khz at 16 bits. Hi-Res is better-than-CD quality sound with a sample rate of 96kHz or 192kHz at 24 bits and a bit rate of up to 9,216kbps. Not all songs on Qobuz are available in Hi-Res format, most are available in Hi-Fi quality, and some are only available in MP3 quality, although MP3 on Qobuz is better than other sources with 320 kbps MP3 (Spotify uses 160 kbps MP3).
There’s a guide to rich listening on their website.
https://www.qobuz.com/nz-en/audio-quality
My experience is that whilst so-called HiRes files can sound cleaner and more natural, at 320 kbps and above it’s the dynamic range and overall loudness rather than the bitrate and sample rate that make the most discernible difference in sound quality, i.e. listening is more engaging and less wearing without excessive compression and extreme loudness. Digital file quality is not the same as rendered music sound quality.
Qobuz Announces Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips as First Artist-Approved Sound Spokesperson
Michael Lavorgna has picked up on the news, and I agree with him that musicians promoting high quality listening experiences is a good thing.
https://twitteringmachines.com/wayne-coyne-the-flaming-lips-qobuz-artist-approved-sound/
I’d like to understand how it will be accomplished, and why Wayne Coyne is the right ambassador. I’ve posted my questions in response to the Qobuz Press Release on their website. If I get a reply, I’ll update this post.
Coyne has spoken about sound quality (I don’t count his surround mixes), and given those views and the supposed ‘meticulious crafting’ of their music, I’m surprised that the band’s albums are generally disappointingly presented.
I’ve listened to American Head (44.1kHz FLAC, DR4!) and can’t see how this ‘comic book’ style of music presented in such a flat sound quality will appeal to anyone seeking clarity, depth, and timbre.
I notice that the musically and sonically exciting albums need to be turned up, and this band’s albums need to be turned down – in more ways than one!
https://www.digitaltrends.com/features/interview-with-the-flaming-lips-wayne-coyne/
Music & Hi-fi Appreciations 